In the container industry, conveyor systems are used to transport containers between various processing stations. Guide rails are typically provided on the sides of the conveyor to ensure that containers will remain in line along the path of travel established by the conveyor belt. The guide rails that are commonly used in the industry can be adjusted to accommodate different container sizes by using simple manual knobs. To perform the adjustment procedure, the operator releases the knobs, positions the guide rail manually at the desired position and then tightens the knobs to lock the guide rails in place. Conventional guide rail systems, however, fail to provide a quick means of adjusting the distance between opposing guide rails. An operator must physically go to each guide rail sections and manually adjust the distance between the guide rail and the center of the conveyor belt or between opposing guide rails. An operator must repeat this procedure for each section of guide rails and on both sides of the conveyor belt. Considering that production lines may have numerous sections to adjust, it may represent an enormous amount of set up time during which the production line is inactive. If a production line is subject to multiple changes of container sizes due to the nature of the industry, the loss of production time is compounded making the production line less efficient.
Thus there is a need in the industry to provide a guide rail adjustment system for conveyor belt that can rapidly be adjusted to accommodate containers of various sizes.